Hingis wins Pan Pacific Open

Tokyo:

Second-seeded Martina Hingis overpowered Ana Ivanovic 6-4, 6-2 today to win a record fifth Pan Pacific Open title. Hingis had lost to Elena Dementieva in the final last year. On Sunday, she relied on solid groundstrokes for the straight-set win over the 19-year-old. "I'm very proud of my record here," said Hingis. "I knew going into today's match that I could make the record if I won". Hingis previously won this tournament in 1997, 1999, 2000 and 2002 and was tied with Lindsay Davenport for the most titles here before Sunday's win.

Holding serve Fifth-seeded Ivanovic advanced to the final when top-ranked Maria Sharapova was forced to retire during their semifinal match with an injured left hamstring. It was only the second meeting between the two players. Ivanovic defeated Hingis 6-2, 6-3 at Montreal in 2006. Hingis held serve to win the first set and then jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the second set before closing out the match in 1 hour, 10 minutes. Today's win was Hingis' first Tier I singles title since winning in Rome in 2006.